Ferb or Fear
by 14AmyChan
Summary: can't think of a better title. T for violence. Ferbnessa. Poor Vanessa. Read at own risk. Mild Phinbella
1. Breakup

_**14AmyChan: Me no own-y~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: Well, isn't this a cheery chapter?**_

_**14AmyChan: You're one to talk.**_

_**Vanessa: *raises eyebrow* Touché.**_

_**14AmyChan: I don't own anything! *^_^***_

"It's just not working out" she sighed, looking around awkwardly. She knows how explosive this guy's temper is. She knows he won't do something in the middle of a crowded area like this. Cutting it off here in the mall. It was the perfect plan. Her dad was going to come and pick her up, probably with another of his –inators.

"But tell me why!" he demanded quietly. It was the most anger he could show in a setting like this, and she knew it. So instead of using his usual pressure tactics on her, he hoped that innocent passerby would see the scene and take pity on him, causing her to stay.

"Because it's just not working out" she reiterated, hoping she didn't have to make a scene out of this. She was willing to if that's what it took. She had her hands on top of the table this time so he couldn't grab them out of everyone's sight and try and break her fingers again. She had made that mistake once, and that was when she decided it was over. Now the job was convincing him of that.

"Baby…" he tried, reaching his hand out to take hers. Knowing that this could only lead to something bad, she snapped her hand back, unwilling to take any chances. She decided now was the time to make a small scene. She stood up in front of him.

"It's just time" she said, in what she desperately hoped was a firm voice. She hoped her eyes didn't give away how scared she was. She hoped that they were as cold as they normally were. She walked away quickly, before some random person told him it was okay to chase after her. Dodging in and out of the crowd, she made her way out of the mall to where her dad was waiting.

"I told you to be here a minute ago" her father said, that same look on his face. Like he was speaking to a five-year-old. It was the first time in a long time she appreciated having an overprotective dad. Hopping into the Norm car, Vanessa Doofenshmirtz buckled her seatbelt and waited for her father to drive her away from the troubles that would soon be far, far behind her_._

At least that's what she hoped.

_**14AmyChan: Okay, that's the prologue. Hope you all like~! *^_^***_

_**Ferb: *reads chapter* *raises eyebrow***_

_**14AmyChan: what?**_

_**Ferb: *eyes suspiciously***_

_**14AmyChan: okay, um, please R&R~! *^_^***_


	2. Fear

_**14AmyChan: I don't own Phineas and Ferb~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: If she did, I would be a lot worse than I am now.**_

_**14AmyChan: You're the one who decides to have a party at the dumpster.**_

_**Vanessa: :(**_

_**14AmyChan: Okay, moving on. *^_^***_

—one week later—

"Vanessa, honey, there's a note here for you" Doofenschmirtz announced, innocent as to what the contents of said paper. Vanessa visibly cowered away from it. A week had passed since they had broken up, and he still kept sending her notes. At first they were sweet handwritten love notes. "I love you baby, come back to me", "Please keep being my whole world", and "Let me love you again". After two days, they had gotten nasty. They now contained threats she knew he would follow through with if ever given the chance. Along with the fact that he now cut and pasted the notes together from newspapers, her ex-boyfriend had succeeded in scaring her into never leaving either of her houses except to go from one to another.

"Sweetheart, are you okay?" the scientist asked, walking closer with the note still in his hand. Vanessa scooted as far away from the horrid slip of paper as she could. She saw a very visible wave of worry cross her father's face. It was then that she realized that she was acting extremely out of character for a recent break-up-ee. To her parents, it was understandable that she didn't want to talk about it, but this would have placed it above the top. Right as she was about to compose herself, she watched with horror as her father opened the note. To make matters worse, he read the note aloud.

"Listen here you little girl, I have a new gun I'd like to give a whirl, fix your mistake, or your life I'll take" Heinz Doofenschmirtz' voice became darker and more angry as he continued to read through the note, only upsetting Vanessa further, who had already placed her hands over her ears to stop the flowing of the words. The poems were always short, always to the point. And always the same thing. Fix the mistake, or her life he'll take. In other words, go back to being his abused girlfriend, or pay the ultimate price. With that horrid thought in mind, Vanessa effectively hid herself in her dad's couch. Or so she thought.

"No one," Doofenshmirtz' voice shook with defensive rage. The note now lay crumpled in his hands. "No one messes with my little girl!" he exclaimed. Vanessa soon felt herself eased out of the couch by some helpful hands. She looked her father in the face as he made a solemn vow.

"You are not going to be getting these notes again. I can't call the police because right now I'm on the run from them, but security will be doubled and you are getting equipment and lessons" her father started to mentally go through a list of what he would need, and instantly ordered the necessary items online.

"What lessons?" she asked, deciding to stay close to her father. Even though his inventions were usually practically useless, and he couldn't defeat a platypus to save his life, he still offered the girl comfort when she needed it. And right now, she needed it.

"I'm keeping the cameras fixed on the lab so you can watch fights between me and Perry the Platypus" he explained, tightening the graphics on the cameras as he ordered more online. "And I'm making you some equipment."

"Thanks, dad" Vanessa smiled, knowing that her father had her back. He could be a fail most of the time when it came to parenthood, but when he felt he should do something when it concerned his daughter, he would do it. Even if it meant humiliating her in the process, he would do it.

—one week after that—

"Vanessa" Doofenshmirtz called his daughter to the lair as soon as he heard the door open and close. He also heard the small thud of his daughter's overnight bag, so he knew it was her. Hearing the click of her boots, the scientist knew his daughter had entered the room. "Sweetheart, would you mind untangling me?" he asked, trying to look past his leg to see his daughter. As he heard her walk over, he knew she was rolling her eyes. All of a sudden, the noise of the shoes stopped and the scientist was soon freed from his entanglement.

"So, what's with the pink flowery space suit?" Vanessa asked, eyeing the said item with suspicion. It was bulky, like the Apollo Astronaut spacesuits. It even had an oxygen tank in the back. The gloves looked like they were for handling radioactive material. To make it all the worse, the suit had pink and yellow flowers all over. As the freed scientist stretched, he looked over at the suit with a smile.

"Oh, that's for you!" he gleefully stated. Vanessa felt her heart stop for a second before it started picking up double time. She stood in shock as her father started explaining the features on the humiliating suit.

"It's bulletproof and flexible, so you can get anywhere and—oh—check out this belt! It's got pepper spray and a grappling hook and-" Doofenschmirtz went on like a kid at Christmas before his daughter interrupted him.

"Oh, dad!" Vanessa interrupted nervously. She couldn't be seen in public with that suit. That was worse that the time her dry cleaning had been switched with Candace's (who she was okay friends with now). "The notes stopped!"

"Really?" Heinz stopped in his explanation to evaluate his daughter. He stared at her intently, trying—and failing—to find any deceit.

"y-yeah…" Vanessa insisted, hiding the note from that morning in her back pocket. She kept insisting that everything was back to normal. She would do anything to not have to wear that suit. It was pink and girly and if she didn't die from her ex, she would from the embarrassment. She'd rather stay at home forever and not go anywhere ever again.

"Then how about lunch?" Doofenschmirtz slung his arm around his daughter's shoulders, attempting to be as casual as possible. He accepted his daughter's word that the notes had stopped. The only one allowed to be evil here was him, and no one was going to take his thunder. And even though he was evil, he would never threaten someone like that.

"S-sure, dad" Vanessa said, easing her way out of the hug. She eyed the suit for a second, wondering which option she should go with. The suit or the lie. And then it hit her. She shoved her dad out of the apartment, her only explanation being "I have to put my bag in my room and get my wallet. Meet you down in the lobby."

"Okay, but be out here in four minutes" Doof said as the door clicked shut behind him. He began to make his way to the elevator. As the hit song from two years played in the elevator, Heinz Doofenschmirtz was relieved that everything was back to normal.

Vanessa acted fast. She took the belt and some super-quick-dry black paint. As swiftly as she could, she gave the belt a much needed makeover. Since she had to wait a minute before the paint would dry, she tossed her overnight bag on her bed, dug through for her wallet (which ended up being at the bottom of the bag), and stuffed it into her pocket. Fastening the now stylish belt around her waist, Vanessa hurried so show her dad that she was no longer in any danger.

A lie that she's had to keep up for a whole week.

—Present Day—

Vanessa sighed angrily. She paced around her room, trying to find a spot to hide the new note. She couldn't understand how he had gotten past her mom's state of the art security system. He sent the notes to her dad's too, when she was there and her dad wasn't looking. But there should have been no way to get to her dad's penthouse or past all the traps that her father set for his nemesis. Then again, the traps _were_ all set for platypuses.

She felt for the belt around her waist that stayed with her everywhere now. It was still there. For the past week, she tried figuring out what everything attached to the belt did without asking for any help. There was a can of pepper spray and a grappling hook just like her father had said. There was also a boomerang, some little smoke bombs (for which she had figured out how to make more if she ran out), a flashlight, and there was even an extendable pole. Probably to fight with if need be.

Speaking of fighting, she had actually been watching the fighting videos of Perry the Platypus. Vanessa noted that his favorite moves included his feet. He seemed to enjoy jumping and kicking the most. A field Vanessa was only slightly familiar with, but she was able to get some practice in to give herself some comfort. There were a few times where the animal used objects like brooms and lamps to fight. Even though he was small, the platypus was able to pack a good punch.

Thanks to those few precautions, Vanessa had been able to go out during the nighttime again. The darkness calmed her down and her belt helped to reassure her. She felt semi-safe again.

As she finally decided to shred the new note, Vanessa wondered if she'd ever feel completely safe again.

_**14AmyChan: Okay, I'm so not used to writing stuff like this**_

_**Vanessa: we can tell.**_

_**14AmyChan: oh, be nice.**_

_**Vanessa: who am I nice to?**_

_**14AmyChan: Ferb. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: you-**_

_**14AmyChan: Please R&R~! *^_^***_


	3. Comfort

_**14AmyChan: I don't own anything. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: now we get more characters, right?**_

_**14AmyChan: yep~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: thank you!**_

_**14AmyChan: please enjoy! *^_^***_

"You sure about testing those out?" Phineas Flynn yawned at his brother. Silently, Ferb Fletcher nodded and pushed Phineas back into bed, silently telling the boy that he needed sleep. Ferb didn't expend his energy as much as Phineas did during the day, so it usually took him a long time to fall asleep. Normally, the British-born boy would read some interesting literature before bed, but because they had decided to make some high-tech night vision goggles, Ferb had been elected to test them out, leaving The Taming of the Shrew for another night to read.

"You told mom you'd be back by three in the morning, right?" Phineas checked as his eyelids drooped. Ferb nodded as he grabbed the goggles. He watched as Phineas wished him good luck before curling up with their pet platypus for some shuteye. Ferb silently left the house to go test the goggles, a list of environments to test it out with him.

* * *

"I'm going out, dad" Vanessa let her father know at sundown. It was Friday evening, and she felt like going to the park. In the cover of darkness, she felt at peace. Well, the closest she could feel to peace given her situation.

"I'll let dad know when he wakes up" Norm cheerfully informed the leaving teen. As the door clicked shut behind her, the robot looked at Doof, who had been blown up more severely this time than normal. Putting his hands on his metallic hips, Norm informed the unconscious man "You're going to miss muffin time."

* * *

Vanessa was clad in black and wore her useful accessory around her waist. The darkness really did help her think. At the very least, it clung to her like a comforting friend. However, she couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't alone in the park. When she heard pencil scratching, she turned around to see who was there. For a split second, she felt like prey being stalked by a lion.

"H-hello?" Vanessa asked, silently kicking herself a second later. Rule one of any cheesy horror movie: never ask questions you don't want answered. They always get answered.

"Vanessa?" a familiar British accent reached her ears, and Vanessa relaxed, feeling the closest thing she'd been to safe she'd been in a long time. Looking around, she tried to detect where the familiar voice had come from. Suddenly, a small tapping came on her left hand. Turning to face it, she barely saw Ferb, who was wearing some kind of weird-looking sunglasses.

"Hey, Ferb" Vanessa sighed of relief at having found the kid. It had been a year since she'd seen him last. And that was when she had been falling off of Tokyo tower. She guessed a memory like that of someone tended to bring along comfort. "Isn't it a little late for you to be wandering around?" she asked, wondering what his mother would think, yet feeling selfish and wanting him to stay.

"I could ask the same of you" Ferb pointed out, a frown on his face. It wasn't a big frown, but it did betray the hurt he felt. Vanessa still only thought of him as a child, something that would probably not change for several years. Ferb immediately noticed the new belt, but did not comment. Nor did he comment on the girl's new jumpiness.

"Touché" she said, remembering that Ferb and his brother—whatever his name was—did weird things most every day just to pass the time. That was how Ferb had saved her from Tokyo Tower. Having Ferb around made her feel a little safer. "You wanna hang out till we have to go home?" she asked, trying not to seem too clingy to the boy's presence. He would probably have to go at some kiddie time like midnight, leaving her to wander aimlessly and vulnerably for three hours after he left.

Ferb nodded as he inwardly rejoiced. He followed Vanessa around the park for awhile. Sometimes, he noted, she would look around in a skittish fret. After about the fifth time she'd done this, Ferb tapped her hand. Vanessa looked down to see the outline of young boy's hand pointing in a specific direction. Following the finger, Vanessa saw that he was pointed to a brightly lit place. It was a marketplace—not too crowded, but it had people.

"Do you wanna go over there?" Vanessa asked, feeling foolish. He must have realized something was wrong. But that couldn't be. He's only twelve years old for cryin out loud! A kid like that shouldn't be able to read emotions so easily. Especially hers. Suddenly, Ferb handed her his sunglasses. "You want me to put on sunglasses at night?" Vanessa asked skeptically. Ferb nodded and handed her the clipboard.

A little uneasy, Vanessa placed the glasses over her eyes and was immediately taken aback at the change in vision. Instead of turning darker like she expected, everything around her seemed to light up. She could see everything around her as if it were clear as day. Wondering if this were an illusion, Vanessa raised the glasses above her eyes and then replaced them to compare. Without the glasses, it was so dark you could barely see anything. With them on, she could see everything around her, including a much taller Ferb than she remembered. He was also wearing a smug and entertained smile.

"These are really cool" Vanessa stated, wondering how he and his brother were able to make the dead of night look like the liveliest part of the day. The dead of night usually comforted Vanessa, but being able to see around when others couldn't made her feel less…_watched_. After a few seconds of marveling vision with the glasses, she felt a clipboard being eased into her hand. Looking at the paper, she realized that Ferb had come out on a mission. On the clipboard was a note written by a hasty and energetic hand. It wasn't Ferb's handwriting; it must have been his brother's. It took Vanessa a few minutes to decipher the messy calligraphy. The bottom portion of the note was written in Ferb's neat handwriting, allowing Vanessa to clearly read the last sentence.

"Environments to test night vision goggles  
1) daytime: visible  
2) evening: visible  
3) night (with lights):  
4) night (only stars and moon): visible  
5) darkness (no light from any source):

Care to help me with some science?"

Vanessa looked up and noticed Ferb had on a new pair of sunglasses, which she now recognized as night-vision goggles. She jotted a note on the paper and handed it back to Ferb. Ferb, upon looking at it, smiled as they both went to the comparatively dimly lit marketplace.

There, they spent the next several hours going over to punk stores and electronics warehouses. They didn't buy a thing, but they had a good time laughing about some things. Such as Vanessa wearing a spiked choker around her neck. Ferb immediately scrunched his nose in childish disapproval, causing Vanessa to chuckle as she placed the "Spike collar" away. It took Ferb a few moments to follow her out of the store, though. He said he'd been looking at something before they made their way to the next store. When they arrived at RadioShack©, both Vanessa and the store clerk watched in awe as it took Ferb approximately ten minutes to upgrade the store's tiny music player into a full-on surround sound system. Complete with remote control and high-grade sound. Even though he said he didn't want it, the store clerk ended up paying Ferb a hundred dollars for the upgrade. As they were about to leave the store, Vanessa noticed Ferb place a big wad full of the money into a small donation jar. Curious, she looked at the jar and noticed that it was for some kids in some other country. Vanessa wondered why Ferb would do that. _Maybe it's because he didn't want the money in the first place_ she mused as they left the store.

A tapping on Vanessa's hand brought her back to reality. She'd already grown accustomed to how Ferb chose to get her attention. Looking over, she saw the boy hold up ten dollars with a smile. "Care for a shake?" he asked, unsure about this course of action. Yes, he was a man of action, but he'd never gotten a girl something to eat before. He wondered briefly if this were a good move.

Vanessa was shocked for a split-second. A shake _did_ sound good right now. It was almost perfect. If she still weren't looking over her shoulder every ten minutes to see if they were being followed. Then again, Ferb was just trying to be a good friend, and some shake-y goodness did sound like a nice relaxer. She checked her watch. They had already spent half the night together, and it was coming onto one o'clock.

"If we've got the time, sure" Vanessa agreed, deciding that she could really go for a shake. She watched as Ferb smiled and led the way to a nearby food joint. It was well lit, yet almost abandoned. The only people inside were a waitress and an old guy sitting in a booth. Vanessa took a deep breath as she stared suspiciously at the older man.

Upon seeing Vanessa's reaction to the other man in the room, Ferb decided to take her to the bar in front of the waitress. As soon as Vanessa sat down in one of the seventies-style rotating-chairs, Ferb noticed that she gradually became more comfortable with the place. This made him feel that the shakes were a good option.

"Why're ya'll wearin' sunglasses in the middle of the night?" the waitress asked with an obvious twang. Ferb thought the African American worker looked vaguely familiar, but decided to cast off the feeling. He decided that he was getting paranoid and that he should just focus on enjoying this cracking good time with Vanessa.

"Because we're cool like that" came Vanessa's odd response. At least, it was odd to Ferb, who—in all of his years of living in the United States—had never heard that phrase before. However, it seemed to be a common phrase. The waitress certainly seemed to get the reference, at least.

"Hey, whatever works for ya'll" the waitress laughed at some sense of humor that appeared to be lost on Ferb. However, he saw that Vanessa seemed to be having a good time and just went along with it. "Anything for ya'll today?" she went on to ask, looking at Ferb who, in turn, nodded over to Vanessa, indicating that she go first.

"I'll take your double chocolate chip shake" Vanessa ordered after picking up the hint from Ferb that she should go first. She wondered if that was him being sweet or kind or just a little gentleman. Any way it was, she decided that Ferb was fun to hang out with, and that they should somehow do this again. Sometime when her life wasn't in danger from a possessive lunatic.

"I'll have a blueberry shake, please" Ferb requested, earning himself an odd look from both his companion and from the waitress, who simply held her notebook and pencil out awkwardly.

"You want a blueberry shake?" she asked with that definitely familiar twang, though Ferb, for the life of him, couldn't tell where he'd heard that tone before. Instead of answering verbally, like any normal person would have, Ferb simply nodded. Internally chuckling at the worker's obvious puzzlement, Ferb watched as the lady took their orders to the back and began making their shakes.

"Where've you had a blueberry shake before?" Vanessa asked, curiosity finally getting the better of her. She'd never even _heard_ of a blueberry milkshake before, let alone tried one. She wondered if it could be any better than her chocolate goodness.

"Don't knock it till you've tried it" Ferb stated, once again falling into amusement as Vanessa's face showed her obvious confusion. It was obvious to him that the idea of a blueberry milkshake seemed completely outlandish to the American teen. Ferb cracked a tiny grin. He was thoroughly enjoying every second of this.

"Here's your shakes!" the waitress came back with the two aforementioned items. She sported a light brown shake with dots of darker brown in her left hand and an eggshell blue shake speckled with ocean blue spots in her right. After placing the shakes in front of her customers, the waitress handed over two spoons. "Ya'll enjoy them now!" the waitress bade as she retreated to the cashier. Most likely to appear semi-busy to any incoming guests. Yet the time was about two o'five in the morning, so it wasn't likely that any new customers would come in.

"Mmm!" Vanessa sighed in relief as a chocolate sensation like no other swept her mouth. Her worries began to wash away in the flood of chocolate. A chocolate shake was usually fine, but with the month she'd been having, the extra chocolate chips really helped her kick back and start to enjoy a sense of normalcy. She closed her eyes and tried to think of a better place she could be. She couldn't. It was all too perfect.

Ferb smiled as he watched Vanessa relish in a single bite from her chocolate shake. Already, he could see tension leaving her shoulders and she seemed less stressed. Yes, the shakes were a good move. Digging into his own shake, Ferb began to savor the taste of the usually unappreciated berries. When they were about halfway done with their shakes, he caught Vanessa staring at his milkshake, unquestionable curiosity in her eyes. Silently, he pointed at her shake.

"It's awesome" Vanessa said, having misperceived the motion. She thought he was telling her that she had hers, and not to steal his. Vanessa felt like she was just hanging with a really close friend, chilling back even when the world was falling apart. It was good to be semi-normal again.

Ferb shook his head, indicating that's not what he meant. To make his intention clear, he scooped up a spoonful of blueberry shake and pointed at her shake again. Confused, but curious, Vanessa scooped out a chunk of her own shake. Ferb offered Vanessa his spoon and held his hand out for hers. Finally understanding the proposition, Vanessa smiled as she handed over her spoon in exchange for his. "Okay" she agreed, taking his spoonful of blueberry shake. Vanessa took a tentive taste of the new and oddly flavored shake. The instant it touched her tongue, Vanessa knew she had found a new taste that she liked. She still liked chocolate better, of course, but this new taste was pretty high up there. It was odd and weird and good at the same time. She happily swallowed the rest of the spoonful.

"That was really good" Vanessa smiled as she started to give Ferb back his spoon. Just as he was about to grab it, she stopped, thinking about it for a second. "You know, we should have just asked for new spoons…" She watched as Ferb shrugged and plucked his spoon from her hands. Pulling a handkerchief out of his pocket, Ferb simply wiped off the spoon before sticking it back into his shake. Vanessa smiled and did the same with her spoon, only with a napkin instead of a handkerchief.

The two continued to drink their respective shakes and even got into random small talk. Ferb soon got the hang of talking with the elder girl. In fact he found it most enjoyable. They talked about the silliest things, and Ferb had to admit that some of Vanessa's stories were more than just a little amusing.

"A platypus?" Ferb questioned after one of Vanessa's stories about her father, who apparently was also an inventor. And one that got a…nemesis, whatever that word meant. Ferb resolved to look that word up the next chance he got. "Your father engages in combat with a platypus?"

"Yeah" Vanessa chuckled softly. It was a sound that never failed to make Ferb's heart fall out of its natural rhythm. Usually it skipped a beat or two. "My dad makes these weird machines for weirder reasons" Vanessa paused here to take a spoonful of chocolate milkshake. "Like one time, he made a machine to brainwash pigeons so he could—"

"…he could…?" Ferb asked, taking a bite out of his milkshake. He wondered why a man would need a battalion of brainwashed pigeons.

"Brain freeze!" Vanessa announced, snapping her eyes shut and placing both hands on the sides of her temple, massaging them thoroughly. After a few seconds, her eyes opened slowly. It was then that she noticed a twelve-year-old hand reaching for her chocolate-y goodness in a glass. Playfully pouting, she scooped the drink up in her hand and spun around in the chair so she was facing away from the bar. She looked over at Ferb, who had mischief written all over his face. Unable to keep the amusement out of her voice, she said "Ferb Fletcher. That has got to be one of the weirdest things you've ever done."

Ferb simply held his hands up in mock innocence. On the inside, he couldn't stop laughing. Seeing Vanessa like that with a brain freeze had to be the most relaxed he'd seen her all summer. Actually, this was the first time he'd seen her this summer. He wondered vaguely why that was. Vanessa, however, soon brought him back to the present with the most childish thing she'd done tonight for the most childish reasons.

Vanessa took her remaining quarter-cup of double chocolate chip shake with a suspicious smirk, making Ferb curious. He had to watch what she'd do next. Taking a glance over at her companion, Vanessa smiled briefly before dumping the rest of the contents in her mouth. The message was clear: My chocolate!

The entirety of the action was so childish and immature, Ferb had to laugh. It was impossible not to. He _did_ have his hand over his mouth to try and muffle the sound, but it did little to help. Especially when Vanessa set the glass down in a hurry so she could massage her temples from the revenge of the milkshake. Ferb couldn't help but chuckle a little bit. He began to double over laughing, and that's when he saw Vanessa raise an eyebrow at the boy. Leaving her head to sort itself out of the most recent brain freeze, Vanessa picked up Ferb's shake and placed it in his hands. It was Ferb's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"I can't get a brain freeze" he stated simply, realizing that Vanessa was trying to extract a small childish price of revenge for his laughter. Ferb realized this was the most immature she'd ever acted in front of him. She must have really needed to de-stress.

Vanessa peered inside Ferb's cup to see if she was right about something. "You have a little more than I had," she pointed out, a grin creeping up on her face. "I think you can manage one brain freeze."

Ferb shrugged, deciding to show her that he could not physically get a brain freeze. It was impossible; he'd tried many times before. Even lunar ice cream had not done the job! Deciding to stick to his man of action nature, Ferb downed the rest of his blueberry milkshake. The next thing he knew, his head seemed to have found its way into some snow. Odd. It was the middle of summer. Confused, the boy placed one hand on his head to realize that his head was not in any snow.

He had gotten his first brain freeze. After a few seconds, he could hear something musical. Turning his head, he saw Vanessa had indeed doubled over laughing. However, she was doing it silently, though Ferb had no idea why. Instead, he smirked at how hard she was laughing. Ferb placed his empty glass on the bar before chuckling himself. Vanessa looked up and realized she'd been caught doing something completely out of her nature. She wasn't one to normally laugh or make kids have brain freezes. She wasn't one to talk about her father and Perry the Platypus or even agree to wear some sunglasses because some kid asked her to. Even if the sunglasses were _really_ cool. And yet, she noticed something else.

She was having _fun_. Something she hadn't been able to feel for a long time and definitely not since the huge mess started. She hadn't felt safe enough to have fun, and yet here she was, splitting her sides because of a few brain freezes. She decided it was a good thing she came with Ferb to test out these weird glasses. They looked stylish and gave her comfort as well. She felt relatively safe. And that was a good feeling. Looking at Ferb, she realized that it was all thanks to him. She decided when all of this drama in her life died down, she would tell him what was happening now and thank him for being there for her.

Just like when she'd fallen off of Tokyo Tower.

* * *

"You sure I can keep these?" Vanessa asked again as the nocturnal duo made their way to the park. Ferb had his pair of goggles, but she still felt like she was getting way too much. And yet, the goggles made her feel safer.

Ferb nodded, knowing Vanessa could see him. They had checked out all the environments they could, and the goggles were mostly visible everywhere. But in complete darkness, the vision was more like normal night goggles on a night with a full moon. In short, not as great as the others. But oh well, at least you could see.

Without warning, Vanessa pulled the clipboard out from underneath Ferb's arm and stopped. Ferb simply watched as the girl started to write something down on the paper. Though he was curious as to what she was doing, he decided to keep his silence and wait for Vanessa to finish her message.

"It's my cell number" Vanessa explained as she handed the board back to Ferb. Ferb's pupils expanded slightly in surprise. He didn't expect this, but it was most certainly welcome. Without a word, he tore a piece of the paper, jotted down his cell phone number, and handed the slip over to Vanessa. Taking the paper, Ferb could see a heartfelt soft smile play on her face.

"Thanks" she said, pulling Ferb into a quick hug. Ferb didn't understand what exactly was going on, but he knew that Vanessa seemed to be going through something difficult. As she began to walk away, Ferb voiced what he'd wanted to say ever since he noticed her nervousness at the beginning of the night.

"Vanessa" Ferb called out, causing the girl to turn back. Her look was that of slight curiosity, urging him to finish his statement. Taking a deep breath, he did indeed continue. "If you to talk, I can be there to listen" he offered with a small smile. Though he felt Vanessa knew this in the back of her head, he just wanted to make sure that she knew for sure that he was there for her.

"Thank you, Ferb" Vanessa smiled and waved at Ferb before making her way home at two-forty-five. Ferb, on the other hand, sighed, but decided that it would be best not to pry. If Vanessa wanted to tell him what was up, she'd do so in her own time. Ferb would just have to be patient.

_Well, patience isn't lost on love_ Ferb thought, thinking of a situation quite similar to his own. With that thought, he began his walk home. He walked through the door at exactly three o'clock in the morning. As the door clicked shut on the Flynn-Fletcher residence, an ominous shadow lay in wait for the dawn to break.

_**14AmyChan: dun dun DUUUUN! *^_^***_

_**Ferb: ?**_

_**14AmyChan: how I love me some suspense! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: what are you planning on?**_

_**14AmyChan: You'll see. *^_^***_

_**Ferb and Vanessa: *facepalm***_

_**14AmyChan: please R&R on the fluffiness of this chapter~! *^_^***_


	4. Tragedy

_**14AmyChan: Hello~! Did you all like that cliffie? *^_^***_

_**Phineas: *is wide awake* I know what we're gonna do today!**_

_**14AmyChan: I'm gonna make more of this fanfiction, what are you going to do? *^_^***_

_**Phineas: … I don't know yet… ^^;**_

_**14AmyChan: how about the disclaimer?**_

_**Phineas: okay… *gives huge, cute eyes* Amy doesn't own anything, so just read on and Carpe Diem!**_

_**14AmyChan: I love it when you say that~! *^_^***_

Phineas was the first one to awaken the next morning, even though it was a little sleepy-eyed. However, those usual first seconds of the morning wore off and he began to brainstorm about today's new _big idea_. His thought process was cut short when he realized that his green-haired brother was still in bed instead of already dressed, ready to go, and kicking his younger brother's butt into high gear.

_That's odd…_ Phineas thought, sneaking his way over to his brother's bed. In Ferb's hand, instead of a book, was the clipboard he had taken the night before. Curious as to see what the results were from the goggles, Phineas eased the clipboard out of his brother's tight grip. _Wonder why he was holding onto it so tight…_, Phineas wondered as he read the clipboard. Aside from the results—which were spectacular—there was some other writing which Phineas could see no reason for being there.

"_Care to help me with some science?"_ The handwriting was obviously Ferb's; however, Phineas could see no reason for Ferb to have written this on something that was supposed to be important. Phineas was usually the one to write—or even draw—randomly on important papers, and Ferb would often tease him for it. Especially on homework assignments during the school year. Phineas shuddered as he remembered how many assignments he'd had to redo because of his absentminded habit. He decided to continue reading the result-sheet-turned-notes rather than dwell on mountains of past-done homework assignments. What came next was some handwriting that was not familiar to the red headed boy.

"_Lead on, stretch"_ the note said, only confusing the boy more. Who was stretch? Who had written the response? Phineas wracked his brain, but could not come up with a logical answer. He plopped himself on the ground in an attempt to think clearly. He would have already asked his brother, but being the kind of person he is, Phineas decided that Ferb had earned the sleep, and couldn't be woken right now. Determined to figure out this mysterious puzzle, Phineas examined the rest of the paper.

Curiously, there were rips where the bottom corners should have been. They were decent-sized, too. It was then that Phineas realized something. Ferb had probably met up with someone last night. Phineas puzzled over this for a second. It _would_ explain the other handwriting that Phineas couldn't recognize. Though, why would they be writing notes if it were at night? Come to think of it, when _did_ Ferb get home?

All these questions spun around in Phineas' twelve-year-old brain. He placed his hands on the sides of his head in an attempt to keep his brain from exploding while it did its thinking. After a few seconds, Phineas opened his eyes to notice Ferb—who had awoken by now—staring at him with a look crossed between humor, horror, and guilt. But humor was the most dominant expression on the slightly older boy's face. Without so much as a sound, Ferb held out his hand. Phineas realized what the gesture was intended for and proceeded to hand over the clipboard, yet silence was an absent factor on his part.

"Sorry, Ferb, I didn't mean to look at something I shouldn't have" Phineas started out as he placed the clipboard in his brother's expectant hands. "But what is all of that? Did you run into someone while you were testing out the goggles? Did you guys have fun? And what about you always telling me not to write on important documents, huh?" Phineas' rapid-fire questions suddenly came to a halt with that last statement. A moment of silence hadn't passed before the two began to laugh.

Phineas laughed so hard his sides felt like they were splitting at the seams. It all seemed so ridiculous for him to be asking Ferb all these questions. If it were important, Ferb would tell him. Phineas had faith in that fact. The two chuckled a little longer together. Phineas watched as Ferb stole a glance at the clock. Following his gaze, Phineas realized that the time was almost eight o'clock.

"Oh, gosh!" Phineas exclaimed, jumping into action. He hurried into his usual summer wear and brushed his hair and teeth. "I need to think about what we're going to do today! We already did a do-nothing day last year, so we need to do something else! I know, how about…"

Ferb simply watched as his brother raced around the room, chatting away at about a hundred words a minute. He smiled, still exhausted from the late night last night, but not wanting to let down his brother in the day's big activity. Ferb finally decided to drag himself out of his bed. Gravity, however, was not his friend this morning.

"Whoa!" Phineas exclaimed, just barley catching his brother from his near fall. Now that he was looking closely, Ferb still had some bags under his eyes. Phineas scanned Ferb's face carefully before setting his brother back on his bed. "You need some more sleep, bro" Phineas said as he continued to get ready for the day. "I'll just hang out with Izzy until you're feeling more awake, okay?"

Ferb nodded, knowing that the solution was a win-win situation. He got some more sleep, more time to dream about Vanessa; Phineas got some time to think of a new invention; and Isabella got to hang out with Phineas alone. Ferb smiled as he settled back into his bed and closed his eyes. He was glad that he'd already put Vanessa's cell phone number to his speed dial. She already had her own personalized ring tone on his phone, which was on his night side table. Ferb felt himself drift off to sleep on that happy thought. He wrapped an arm around Perry, who had decided—for reasons unknown—to stay home today and curl up in bed. Ferb felt glad for the company.

* * *

"What'cha doin?" Isabella asked as she entered the backyard of her best friends' house. Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher's car was gone and she knew that Candace was probably with her boyfriend, Jeremy, in the park or something. She was pleasantly surprised when only one of the brothers was in the backyard. The one she was crushing on, to be exact. Even though she instantly went through the roof on her happiness levels, she still kept as cool a head as she could.

"I'm tryin to think of something to do today…" Phineas replied, his face scrunched up in concentration. He'd been out here for a grand total of fifteen minutes and not one idea seemed good to him. He almost felt like going to the blueprints shop and see what they had in their "impossible" files.

"_The_ Phineas Flynn doesn't know what he's going to do today?" Isabella asked, feigning shock. She smiled when Phineas didn't seem to catch onto her humor. In fact, he seemed a bit embarrassed.

"Well— Not yet— I mean…" Phineas started to try and explain himself when Isabella cut him off with a giggle.

"Two years and you still can't pick up sarcasm when you hear it" Isabella mused between giggles. It took Phineas a couple of seconds for _that_ to register before he, too, began to laugh. For another hour, the two talked and joked and continued to brainstorm ideas for the day. Neither thought that anything bad could possibly happen today.

"I'm gonna go check on Ferb" Phineas announced as he stretched and headed for the back door of his house. He turned to Isabella and smiled. "You can come in if you want to."

"All right" Isabella cheered inside her head, but agreed with a more subtle degree of happiness. She walked into the living room and sat on the couch. She looked at the purple rug and remembered the day it had somehow turned purple. It was such a magical day for her, she got lost in the memory…

Phineas looked back at Isabella once more to make sure she was comfortable. Upon seeing that she was comfortable and smiling, Phineas smiled to himself before walking up the stairs. All the while, he was trying to think of something to do today. It had to be something amazing! Something big! Something that would—

Phineas saw the door to his room was slightly ajar and instantly noticed several things not right. For one, the room was in complete disarray. Things lay strewn on the floor, almost as if they were tossed half-hazardously. Blueprints for projects from the past lay ripped upon the ground shuffled and crumpled as if someone had stepped on and through them. Ferb's side of the room looked far worse, but that wasn't the thing that Phineas found the most shocking.

Ferb's bed had its covers crumpled in some places, ripped in others. There were a few clean cuts through some of the sheets, and feathers from Ferb's pillow lay everywhere. Phineas' numb feet carried him to the side of his brother's bed, only to find something horrifying.

The only occupant in the room was Perry, and he was covered in a red substance that instantly sickened Phineas. As the boy sank to his knees, he kept an eye on his unconscious platypus and a single thought floated through his numb brain. Where was Ferb?

Isabella was now laying belly down on the floor of the carpet, stroking and admiring its softness like Phineas had done some time ago. It was then that she heard something peculiar. It was like a bang or a thud from upstairs. Isabella was snapped out of her daydream at the sound. Then, it was quiet. Isabella then decided to take in the Flynn-Fletcher house surroundings once more.

Everything was normal. The carpet was white except for the living room, which had purple carpet. Pictures hung in their places with care. If Isabella weren't on guard, she would be daydreaming about the ones with Phineas in them. Yet part of her somehow knew this was not the time for that. Getting up, she decided that she'd go to the stairs and call up to see if everything was all right. Isabella was careful of each step she made, so she was looking at the floor. That's when she saw it.

Speckles of red. They seemed to form a trail from the stairs. Glancing around, Isabella tried to determine if the trail had come _from_ the front door, or out _to_ the front door. After all, she didn't know if Ferb had been hurt during the testing of the goggles. But then again, if he _had_, Phineas' expression would have given it away. Phineas wouldn't have even been _outside_. He would have been with Ferb, making sure that he was comfortable. So there were two options: Ferb was great at hiding blood, or something worse was going on.

Not really caring about anything except for the safety of the two brothers, Isabella sped her way to the top of the stairs and to the door of Phineas and Ferb's room. It was open, so Isabella could see within. What greeted her wasn't a pretty sight. It looked like someone had just come in, made a mess looking for something, and then went on their merry way. Phineas was on his knees next to Ferb's bed, his eyes glazed over in horror.

Isabella instantly went into defensive mode. She knew Phineas was in a state of shock, and that he should be moved immediately, but the reaction she could get from him would probably be harsh. Isabella cast aside her fear and did what needed to be done. She walked into the room and placed a tentive hand on Phineas' arm, yet the boy made no motion. He did however, start talking.

"Ferb…" he said, so weakly Isabella almost didn't hear it. Then it became louder. "Someone did this to Perry… Someone's got to have Ferb… Someone's got him… Why? Why would someone…? Who could have…?" Phineas continued to ramble as something he said caught Isabella's attention. _Perry_. She had just assumed that the boy's pet had gone off somewhere like he usually did, but this apparently was not the case for today. Curiously yet cautiously, Isabella finally turned her attention to the occupant of Ferb's bed.

"Perry!" Isabella cried, instantly reaching out for the obviously wounded animal. She then stopped herself short, and remembered her Veterinarian Patch. She quickly left the animal where he was and flew downstairs for a rag and a large bowl. She filled the bowl with warm water as quickly as she could and went right back up the stairs just as quickly. By the time she arrived back in the room, Phineas had really taken in Perry's appearance and was now stroking the platypus' wet and sticky fur. The face that Phineas made as he turned to Isabella nearly ripped her heart in two. His face expressed such sorrow, hurt, loss, and confusion that trying to put it to words would be a grave misdeed.

"Who could have done this…?" he asked, looking for an answer from the equally confused girl. All she could do was come in with the water and rag and sit across the bed from Phineas over the wounded Perry. She wet the cloth with warm water and proceeded to clean off Perry's fur. The animal winced slightly, but relaxed when Isabella continued to wash him. Phineas could only watch in sorrow.

"Platypuses… they don't do much… Who'd want to hurt Perry?" Phineas stumbled through his words, and all Isabella could do was listen. She had never in her life felt so helpless. "And…" Phineas continued, his eyes beginning to well with tears. "And… Ferb's gone… He's not here… What- Why isn't Ferb here?"

"I don't know" Isabella said quietly as she finished wiping off most of the blood on Perry. There was a long and deep gash on the animal's back, and Isabella proceeded to wrap him firmly in her sash. She could re-earn most of those patches anyways. The most important things at the moment were to stop Perry's bleeding and comfort Phineas. The first she felt confident with, but the second… well, it didn't seem her place. Yet she figured that she ought to try first. "But we'll figure everything out," Isabella continued as she tied the sash snugly. She looked up to see _her _Phineas' eyes begin to overflow with tears. If she weren't determined now to get the entire town searching for Ferb and Perry's assailant—and trust me, she was—then she sure was now. "I promise" she stated firmly. She glared long and hard at those eyes she loved so dearly. And slowly yet surely, a glimmer of hope began to make its way into his eyes. She could have cried with relief, but she knew this wasn't the end.

It was the beginning of their worst nightmare.

_**14AmyChan: dun dun DUUUNN! O_O**_

_**Phineas: This is such a CLIFFHANGER!**_

_**14AmyChan: yep, that's right! *^_^***_

_**Isabella: That's not like Phineas…**_

_**14AmyChan: He just walked into a room where his pet is seriously hurt and he can't find his brother. I think he'd act something like this…**_

_**Phineas: I'm still here, you know…**_

_**Isabella: well…**_

_**Phineas: I know…**_

_**14AmyChan: *ahem* PLEASE R&R, COOL PEEPS~! *^_^***_


	5. Terror

_**14AmyChan: I don't own PnF~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: I guess it's back to me now, huh?**_

_**14AmyChan: on the nosey! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: 0_o**_

_**14AmyChan: heh heh… ^^; have fun reading! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: whatever…**_

Vanessa had spent her entire morning looking for it. It couldn't be true. After all this time, he'd just _give up_? It couldn't be possible. She searched between the cushions, under the couch, in the lamp, all places he'd stuck them before. But nothing. Zilch. Nada.

There was no note today.

Vanessa could feel herself start to fly with happiness. Yet she could not force herself to take off the belt and goggles—which actually acted as sunglasses during the day. It was cool how they lit up the night and darkened the day. She told herself there was nothing to be afraid of anymore. He had left. It was all over.

And yet she couldn't force herself to not be skittish every time she felt watched. She couldn't _force_ herself to feel completely free and rid of the feeling that she _was_ being watched. Like prey being stalked by a clever hunter. She couldn't get rid of the pain of not feeling safe. It was as though he were in every corner. Every shadow. Every nook and cranny.

And yet, she couldn't kill the hope that it was indeed true. That it was over. She ended up spending more than four more hours searching for a new note. Something to end her carefully balanced happiness. There was nothing.

"Perry the Platypus should have been here by now!" Doofenschmirtz paced for the umpteenth time in Vanessa's space. Today, however, she didn't mind, but nor did she subtly cling to his presence like a flickering lantern in a dark cave. Vanessa looked around and did note the odd quiet that had overtaken her father's penthouse suite. Whenever Perry the Platypus was around, the place was livelier with rants, back stories, fighting, and curses. And yet, it always seemed to happen every day. It was almost tradition.

Hearing a subtle noise from the window, Vanessa turned; ready to guard herself, but it was just Perry the Platypus in his platy-plane—as Vanessa had dubbed it—and… a sash? The animal didn't kick the door down, as per usual. And he seemed to directly avoid the trap today, eyeing it warily. Vanessa noticed a flyer in the animal's paw and wondered what it was.

"Perry the Platypus, what's with the sash?" Doof began to ask rapid fire questions when he noticed something about the animal's back. "Perry the Platypus, are you _bleeding_? Who did this to my nemesis?" Doof continued to rant about how no one except him hurt his nemesis, least of all in a way that wasn't cartoonishly humorous. However, he was cut off when the agent handed the scientist the flyer.

"What is this?" Doof asked as he took the paper from Perry's offering hand. He stared at it for a few seconds. "I've never seen this kid before. Is that _green_ hair? How is that even possible?"

"Green hair?" Vanessa instantly ran to her father and snatched the paper from his hands. Ignoring a shocked platypus and scientist, Vanessa practically drank in the information on the page.

**MISSING!**

**Ferb Fletcher is a twelve-year-old boy with green hair  
and a knack for tools. If you have seen this boy, please  
inform local police or call the number below.**

Vanessa looked at the picture of Ferb that was on the page. He was with another kid who had red hair, and the two were smiling. Vanessa vaguely remembered Ferb's brother, the one with red hair, but he wasn't the one who held her attention. Ferb was smiling, something she'd seen him do on several occasions. His eyes held a certain—yet subtle—glint, implying that a joke might have been told before the picture was taken. In his hand, Ferb held a screwdriver, and seemed to be waving at the camera. It was a recent picture as far as Vanessa could tell, probably taken at the beginning of summer.

Ignoring the stares into her back, Vanessa fled into her room and snatched her phone off her nightstand. She quickly dialed the most recently inputted number and desperately hoped the kid would pick up. It occurred to her that this could be some kind of sick joke, that Ferb could be fine and at home and that this would probably wake him up or something. Boys _have_ been known to sleep until two o'clock in the afternoon, after all…

The ringing in her ear continued. It was a horrid noise. Finally it stopped.

"Hullo, this is Ferb" a voice danced in Vanessa's ear. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ferb, I thought-"

"Please leave a message at the beep" the British accent concluded, leading to a beep and then silence. Vanessa's phone hit the ground faster than she could think. It could still be a joke, couldn't it? Ferb could just be asleep. He could be working on something cool. He could be—

"Vanessa, sweetie…" Doofenschmirtz tried talking to his daughter. "Perry the Platypus needs that back. He's got to get back to his agency and get something for that cut on his back. It looks really serious…"

"Perry" Vanessa turned to the platypus, who had looked at Vanessa when called. "I'm going with you. I need to know where he is."

Both platypus and evil scientist were shocked at Vanessa's tone of voice. To her father, it seemed that his daughter were _angry_. No, _furious_! And even scared. But why would she be? Her mess should have ended a week ago, and they didn't even know this kid! The platypus was equally confused. What was Ferb—his owner—to her? But if she did know something about where Ferb could be, then he would welcome any help she could offer. Perry moved as quickly as his injury would allow and grabbed Vanessa's hand. He led her over to the platy-plane. Yes, it was actually called a platy-plane. As the two sped off, they could both hear Doofenschmirtz's shout.

"Curse you Perry the Platypus! And Vanessa, make sure you're back in time for dinner!"

Vanessa couldn't hear the call of her father. She couldn't feel the steady vibration of her chair as the platy-plane flew. She heard nothing. She felt numb. Only one thought was on her mind. _Please let Ferb be safe…_

_**14AmyChan: okay, so now Vanessa knows and Perry's helping with the search~! *^_^***_

_**Perry: krkrkrkrkrkrrr**_

_**14AmyChan: no need to get huffy!**_

_**Perry: krkrkrkrkrkrkrKRRRR!**_

_**14AmyChan: Rather than chew me out, would you like to tell them to read and review?**_

_**Perry: krkrkrkrkrkrrrrr**_

_**14AmyChan: You heard the secret agent! *^_^* please R&R~! *^_^***_


	6. Search

_**14AmyChan: okay, so now we get to the searching~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: you know, for a story about me and Ferb, there's not a lot of Ferb in here.**_

_**14AmyChan: you know, you're right. OI FERB! *^_^***_

_**Ferb: …**_

_**Vanessa: not what I meant**_

_**14AmyChan: I know~! *^_^* Ferb, wanna do the disclaimer?**_

_**Ferb: *is looking at Vanessa***_

_**14AmyChan: Ferb?**_

_**Ferb: *in dreamland***_

_**Vanessa: Ferb?**_

_**Ferb: Yes?**_

_**Vanessa: Disclaimer?**_

_**Ferb: oh, yes. Amy doesn't own me or my brother or this lovely girl.**_

_**Vanessa: what?**_

_**Ferb: NOTHING! O/O**_

Right after Phineas and Isabella had put the wounded Perry in his own bed to rest; they had gone back to the boys' room to inspect the damage closely. Phineas had been recovering from the initial shock, so Isabella thought it safe to allow the boy back in to help.

"Isabella…" Phineas' voice was heard after a few minutes of searching the room. Isabella had turned her head to see what the boy had made his way back to Ferb's empty bedside. Sensing that Phineas would not talk for a little while, Isabella walked over to her friend and found something odd in his hands. It was a note. She took the note—which had been composed of newspaper clippings—and read it to herself.

"_Lover boy's gonna get it  
unless he says he'll quit it  
make sure the girl gets this  
or she'll be at fault for the death of his  
You'd better hurry…"_

"Lover boy?" Isabella asked aloud, instantly analyzing the note for any possible clue or detail that could possibly give anything away. She examined the newspaper clippings, careful not to make too many fingerprints. What she noticed was that the glue seemed to be a tad wet, yet still held the pieces in place. That meant the note was recently made, so this guy shouldn't have had enough time to plan this entire thing through carefully. "Phineas, does Ferb have a close friend that's a girl?" she asked, rereading the note. After a few seconds of no response, Isabella decided to look Phineas in the eye, a task she somewhat dreaded given the circumstances.

When she looked at Phineas, his eyes were locked on where the note had been in his hands. He hadn't moved. Not an inch. Yet Isabella could tell his mind was at work, just as hers had been for the past half-hour. Silently, Isabella awaited a response from the red-headed tinkerer.

"Isabella" Phineas drew her name out when he said it, so Isabella simply watched the boy in acknowledgement. Phineas finally turned his head to the waiting Fireside Girls leader. "Someone took Ferb. We need to start looking for him. Right now."

"I'm one step ahead of you, Phineas Flynn" Isabella replied, already having all her fireside girls on speed dial. "Girls, it's a level 5 emergency. Get to the activity base with all the help you can ASAP."

The next few hours were spent making home base in the Flynn-Fletcher backyard and gathering a search party large enough to investigate the tri-state area.

* * *

"Does everyone know their sections?" a red headed boy asked an enormous crowd as Vanessa followed Perry the Platypus into some random backyard. Yet it looked like almost _everyone _in Danville were here. Vanessa made her way through the crowd to the front where a twelve-year-old-boy—Ferb's brother from what Vanessa could remember—continued to talk.

"I understand that you are all taking time out of your lives to help find my brother, and for that, I can't thank each and every one of you enough. But I don't want people to get hurt, so if you find him, call home base immediately. We'll send in some backup" the boy seemed earnest and heartfelt in all of his words. Vanessa looked at the kid's eyes. They looked so sad and heartbroken, and yet so determined that she could not find it in her to look away. Even when tears of her own threatened to overflow at the harsh reality of it all. Ferb was missing. He was really missing. "Please help me bring my brother home…" the kid finished off as the entire crowd let out a battle cry and dispersed. Each person had a map of the town and a different paper with them. Vanessa couldn't tell what it was, but she decided she should figure out what exactly was going on. Quickly, she made her way to the front to find out how she could help bring Ferb home safe and sound.

When she reached the front of the crowd, she found the red head with a girl with black hair. They were in the middle of talking about backup. He was being insistent on going while she tried to get him to stay. Vanessa cleared her throat to let them know she was there. It got their attention.

"Hi" the boy tried smiling at Vanessa, but even she could tell that ever-present sadness behind his eyes. It was probably behind hers as well. "You're Ferb's friend, aren't you? You were the one who fell out of the sky in Tokyo."

"Yeah, I'm Vanessa" Vanessa introduced herself, grateful that she wasn't the only one with a bad memory here. "You're Ferb's brother, and you're…"

"I'm Phineas, and this is my neighbor, Isabella" the red-head—Phineas—clarified. Though at the mention of Ferb, his eyes immediately dimmed. Vanessa instantly wished that Ferb were here. She had no idea what his brother was like or how to deal with him. Phineas, however, gained some spark back in his eyes when the girl—Isabella—placed a hand on his shoulder. Then he started talking again. "Ferb's gone missing, and we have no idea where he is. Have you seen him?"

"Well, I found this" Vanessa handed Phineas the flyer that she had received, gaining a confused glance from the boy. Vanessa noticed Perry the Platypus—who seemed to be acting mindless for some reason—subtly facepalm at her. She mouthed 'what?' before the animal resumed its mindless state. She looked back at Phineas and Isabella to find they were staring at her. "What?" she asked, genuinely confused.

"We didn't make flyers" Isabella stated, extremely matter-of-fact. Vanessa could tell this girl was probably in charge of most of the search. Isabella then took the flyer to inspect it more closely. "It's probably just Irving trying to help" she sighed after a few seconds. She handed the paper back to Vanessa, who looked once again at Perry the Platypus, who sighed of what seemed to be relief. It was then that Vanessa realized something.

O.W.C.A. must be helping with the search. A request from one of their most highly regarded field agents would probably get a lot of the agents to help out. So, why didn't Phineas know about it? Oh well, it didn't matter for now. Now, what was important was Ferb and his well-being.

"How do I help?" Vanessa asked the two kids, who looked up with slight curiosity. Vanessa decided that she should probably do a _small _bit of explaining. "We hung out yesterday, so I don't think he should be too far away…"

"You two hung out yesterday?" Isabella asked, and Vanessa couldn't help but feel she was going to be interrogated. However, instead of continuing to question the older girl, Isabella simply rushed out of her chair and into the house. Confused, Vanessa turned to Phineas, yet when she was going to ask what was going on, she noticed that some of the color had fled from his face.

"What was all that about?" Vanessa asked anyways. She was beginning to feel uneasy. Unsafe. Like how she'd been waking up for the past few weeks. Terrified. She felt like prey, and she was getting sick of it. He'd stopped sending notes, so there should be nothing to fear anymore. Right?

"Vanessa, do you know anything about this?" Isabella asked, having reappeared by the older girl's side. Vanessa saw a slip of paper in Isabella's hand and instantly wanted to run away from it. She couldn't see what it said, but she could tell when something was from _him_. Fighting the urge to run away, Vanessa sent a trembling hand to retrieve the paper. She took a few deep breathes to calm herself down and read the paper. Maybe it wasn't from him. Maybe she was just overreacting. Maybe—

"_Lover boy's gonna get it  
unless he says he'll quit it  
make sure the girl gets this  
or she'll be at fault for the death of his  
You'd better hurry…"_

"No…" Vanessa managed to get out. The paper slid innocently from her hands, yet she no longer wanted to look at it. He _had_ been watching her. She had gotten careless. And now it was all her fault. Ferb was gone and it was all her fault. She wanted to run away. She wanted to move far away from here. And yet one fact held her in place. Ferb Fletcher was missing. And he was in the hands of a controlling lunatic.

"No?" Phineas repeated, obvious curiosity and seriousness in his eyes. It was then that Vanessa knew she'd probably have to tell these people she didn't know too well about what had been going on in her life for the past month. These two strangers. The only reason she knew them was because of an important person in her life. A very sweet, quiet, loving important person. And right now that person needed to be brought home. And raising the statistics in the favor of his coming home meant telling these two strangers… "No what?" Phineas asked, bringing Vanessa to the present. Her hands trembled as she looked down at the piece of paper on the ground.

"I thought it stopped… I thought he went away…" Vanessa knew she probably wasn't making much sense. Well, the expressions on the kids' faces helped her figure that out. So she decided to start at the beginning. "I used to have a boyfriend, Johnny—"

"He's got Ferb?" Phineas asked, wide eyed and obviously furious. Before he could jump to anymore conclusions, Vanessa decided that continuing would be the best option for now.

"No, not him. Johnny wouldn't do something like this. And he couldn't even try from four bi state areas over" Vanessa clarified, leaving the kids confused. She decided to pick up her explanation. "So when Johnny moved, I was alone and pissed. Then this guy shows up and we hang out and then we start dating. It's cool for awhile, but then he…_changed_."

"Doesn't sound too good" Isabella noted, her expression serious. Even though her face didn't betray it, Vanessa could tell that Isabella was on her side about this. For some reason or another, Isabella was on her side. For some other reason, it made Vanessa feel a little less alone in the world. Enough so for her to keep going.

"He got violent, and I decided to end it" Vanessa summed up, saving both herself and the kids from the graphic details. "So then he starts sending me notes, really sweet ones, too. And then they got threatening. Every day for a month…"

"You don't have to say any more" Phineas interrupted. Vanessa looked at the kid's face and noticed how serious it was and how controlled. She instantly felt uncomfortable and guilty with the amount of anger the boy was giving off. Thankfully, he took a couple of deep breaths and some of the anger seemed to seep away. Not all of it, but some of it. Phineas continued. "We need to find out where this guy is right—"

"Team bluejay to home base, come in home base" a static-y voice came in over the machinery in the background. Isabella whirled her way around and instantly picked up the incoming call.

"Home base to team bluejay, have you found anything?" Isabella asked as soon as she had a headset on. Vanessa and Phineas instantly went over to the busy girl to see if they could catch anything from the conversation. They didn't catch much, but it was enough.

"Ferb… looks serious… this… armed… need backup!...Run Gretchen!"

"Addison!"

"I'm fine… keep going!"

The line soon began to stabilize. Vanessa guessed it was because the two were coming into range of the machine and the fact that Isabella seemed to be messing with the signals, getting them a clearer one.

"Team bluejay, is everyone safe?" Isabella asked, her face betraying some of the intense worry that she must have felt inside.

"We all made it out of there, we almost got caught" the first voice reported. Vanessa couldn't take it anymore. She grabbed the mic from a very confused Isabella.

"Hey, this is a friend. Listen, you need to get your team as far away from there as possible" Vanessa ordered. She turned around from Isabella and Phineas so she could think. After a few seconds, a horrible thought struck her. "Were you at an abandoned little house on the edge of the tri-state area?" she asked, fearing the worst.

"Y-yeah, it looks awful…" the voice responded. Vanessa heard some shouting in the background and then heard the voice come back on. "How did you know that?"

"Let's just say this guy has a sick sense of humor that you don't want to get" Vanessa warned. She looked back to Isabella and Phineas, who seemed to be arguing about something. "I'm the backup, and I'm going to get Ferb out of there" Vanessa told the girl on the other line. "So get out of there right now, and don't look back."

"You make him sound like he's not human" the voice remarked from over the machinery.

"Define human" Vanessa said dryly, remembering the abundance of verbal abuse that had come before her ex had even laid one _finger_ on her. "Just get out of there. I'm going to get Ferb." Vanessa handed the mic back to Isabella, who looked defeated. Vanessa was confused. Wasn't her going to get Ferb a good thing?

"I'm going, too" Phineas stated. It wasn't a question. Vanessa was about to argue about how this wasn't any place for a kid to be when he anticipated and answered her remark. "I'm not too young to go get my brother from someone as horrible as you say this guy is" Phineas said, already leading the way out of the backyard. However, instead of going to the street to begin the impossibly long trek to the old home, he headed for the garage.

Vanessa took one look back at Isabella—who was in the middle of calling at least fifteen different people—before following Phineas to his garage. When she got there, there was a tricked out and ramped up car, waiting for her. Also waiting for her, in the driver's seat, was Phineas, strapped in the car and ready to go. Vanessa made her way to the driver side door and opened it.

"Aren't you a little young to—"

"Drive a car? Yes. Operate a starter remote? Not really" Phineas said, holding a small remote in his hands. Vanessa wondered how a kid like Ferb could have a brother like Phineas.

"And do you know where we're going, oh great holder of the remote?" Vanessa asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"Well, no" Phineas admitted. He also looked a little flustered as he moved over to the passenger side. "And just because I've got a remote doesn't mean—"

"It's called sarcasm" Vanessa interrupted as she ducked into the car, buckled up, and turned the car on. She glanced over at Phineas' confused face and made a mental note to thank Ferb for not sending her to prolonged exposure of his brother.

"What _is _sarcasm?" Phineas asked as the car bolted out of the driveway and onto the street. Vanessa did all she could to hang on while driving the vehicle to a familiar old worn-down cottage on the edge of the tri-state area.

_**14AmyChan: okay, so that's the end of that chapter~! *^_^***_

_**Ferb: 0.o**_

_**14AmyChan: yes, they're on their way to get you. *^_^***_

_**Ferb: 0.o**_

_**14AmyChan: yes, team bluejay is fine. *^_^***_

_**Ferb: Please read and review.**_

_**14AmyChan: yes, please do that~! *^_^***_


	7. Pain

_**14AmyChan: I don't own anything~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: Hang on, Ferb, we're on our way!**_

_**Vanessa: Move it or lose it, people!**_

_**14AmyChan: okay, okay. On with the story, I suppose. *^_^***_

Pain. That was the only thing Ferb felt. The never ending pain. That, and the ropes that bound his hands to this splintered wooden chair. And the coarse gag that was wrapped around his mouth, preventing him from talking. As if he would have been talking had the gag not prevented him. Through his blurred vision, Ferb could make out nearly nothing in the surrounding darkness. However, that didn't stop him from trying to gain his bearings.

Ferb occasionally heard the whistle of wind, usually high pitched. That meant that wind was getting into his small prison through smaller holes. That either meant high security or a ratty shack that someone had tried and failed to patch up. Based on the acrid smell of alcohol that never seemed to leave the place, Ferb guessed it was the second. Ferb shivered once more in the cold. Filled with regret, the boy remembered back to when this had started.

He remembered back to when he was in bed. Only fifteen minutes since Phineas had left the room to think of his new big idea. He should have known something wasn't right when Perry started to growl. Ferb had thought nothing of it except that he was perhaps holding the pet too tightly. He had let Perry go, hoping that would help cease the animal's noise. It did, for a little while. Then Perry yelped loudly, alerting Ferb to the animal's pain. As quickly as he could have, he had bolted up in bed and snapped his eyes open. What greeted him was not a pretty sight, by any standards.

In front of him was his platypus, midair. However, a thick trail of blood was what caught Ferb's attention. Glancing at the intruder's fist, Ferb found a glass shard. It had a tint of amber, so he assumed it was an alcohol bottle. As quickly as a half-asleep boy could, he had attempted to come up with a plan. However, before he could come up with one, the man had attempted to slash at Ferb with his piece of glass. He had nicked Ferb's knuckle, effectively leaving a trail of blood. Yet, that wasn't what had Ferb's attention. Perry had been bleeding profusely.

The man had swiped once more with his piece of glass, this time getting Ferb in the back of the leg, hindering movement. Ferb had wanted to yelp in pain, but his willpower kept him silent. Ferb ran over to Phineas' side of the room, drawing the man over. Ferb yanked open Phineas' blueprints drawer and flung the endless papers in the man's face. Using his bought time quickly, Ferb had raced over to his side of the bed, where Perry had been. Ferb had torn his blankets apart and began to dab some of the blood away, apologizing when Perry whimpered.

"I'm sorry" Ferb had said, dabbing with the torn blanket. When it had absorbed its full, Ferb had tossed the bloody rag behind him and tore another piece of blanket off. Right when he was about to dab some more, Ferb had felt he should move. He had moved his head to the right a tad and had been effectively frightened when a bloody piece of glass sliced through the air and his pillow. Ferb had then attempted to grab the blanket and blind the man, yet the man had been slightly faster.

"Not twice, lover boy" the unfamiliar voice had sneered at Ferb as he yanked the boy up by his green hair. Ferb had just glared at the intruder as he raised the piece of glass again. The man eased the glass over Ferb's cheek, slicing it open. "I'd kill you know, but that's no fun" the man had said. The man had looked around at the room with a sick laugh. "Nice what we've done with the place, huh? Now we just need to take out some trash."

The man had glared at Ferb as he slapped the boy in the face. Ferb's only response had been to spit out the excess blood. Ferb had wondered how on earth this man could have been that strong. When Ferb had just looked back up after emptying his mouth of blood, the man had just chuckled.

"Tough kid, huh?" the man had smirked as he pulled up his fist. Ferb had known that this couldn't have been a good sign. "That's easy to fix."

Then the darkness had come with a sharp blow to the head. Now he was here in this cold, dark room. Filled with the smell of alcohol and confined with the same man who had kidnapped him. The man had proved to be quite violent and an irresponsible drunkard as well. So far, Ferb had his cuts from the house, a few new ones covering his arms and legs, both eyes blackened, and several more bruises. A few of his cuts had already become infected, and the pain was slowly increasing. He had not been given anything to eat and no water. Yet that was of no consequence. Ferb was used to building all day and not eating until snack time or dinner time. From what he could tell of the time, only six hours had passed since his abduction. As time slowly ticked by, he concentrated on the frayed rope that held him where he was and the impossible drunkard that was sure to be on the other side of the room.

The rope that bound him was second hand and frail, easy to pick apart if you only knew how. Also, the chair was splintered in _just_ the right place, the uneven texture of the chair making for an excellent file. So Ferb began to slowly but surely tear away at the rope that bound him. His plan for when the rope was gone? Knock the man out, tie him up, call the police, and get home and washed up before anyone noticed. Piece of cake? Ferb hoped so.

_**14AmyChan: okay, I just wanted to let you all in on how Ferbo's doing~! *^_^***_

_**Phineas: *reads* Does he really think no one's going to notice?**_

_**14AmyChan: It's the kind of person he is. I think you'd notice, but he'd probably brush it off or something. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: That jerk is so dead! *grabs chainsaw***_

_**Phineas: I'm with you on that one. *grabs that cool baseball mitt he and Ferb made***_

_**Vanessa: a baseball mitt?**_

_**Phineas: With remote control baseball.**_

_**Vanessa: *facepalm***_

_**Phineas: ?**_

_**14AmyChan: Okay, so please R&R~! *^_^***_


	8. Confrotation

_**14AmyChan: Okay, another chapter~! And this time, I brought in some professionals. *^_^***_

_**Adam: Please, don't do what you're about to read in this chapter**_

_**Jaimie: Ever!**_

_**Adam: They're what you call "fictional characters that Amy doesn't own"**_

_**14AmyChan: hey!**_

_**Jaimie: It's safer that way.**_

_**Adam: it's the truth!**_

_**14AmyChan: ugh… oh well~! Read on~! *^_^***_

"Is this it?" Phineas asked as Vanessa expertly eased the car into a stop. She didn't get out; she only looked out of the windshield at the old shack that used to be a happy place for her. The only place that had been her refuge after her parents had split. Over the years, she'd stopped coming, but she'd never stopped caring for the old cottage. That is, until her ex.

The old wooden planks that used to be shined and polished every day by Vanessa herself were now rotted with bits and pieces that had fallen away. _He_ had said it was a look that matched hers. Punk, he'd added quickly, always Punk. The walls that had once housed homey stones colored various shades of grey were now caked with dirt and home to overgrown and vicious-looking vines. The sickly looking plants had impressed her _him_, so she had left them. He'd always said they gave off a more mysterious look, much more like her. The lawn had once been lush and green, teeming with life during the summer and a crystal carpet in the winter. Now? Today, it was a burnt down hopeless attempt at half-life. The completely dead lawn seemed to intrigue _him_, so she left that, too. It was now pathetic and lifeless. Peeking up at the roof, Vanessa saw that it was still sturdy, if only barely. She finally got out of the car, ready to face the dead house and _him_.

Vanessa made her way to the side of the house and reached for her belt. Satisfied that it was still there, Vanessa's hand made its way to one of the first items she'd learned was there. Never before was she so grateful for her father's sense of protection. Odd that it may be, it had come in handy. Quickly finding what it was looking for, Vanessa's hand drew out the grappling hook from its holster on her left hip. She took careful aim at the chimney and fired. The air-compression in the small device did the trick and sent the grappling hook to the roof. Vanessa gave the rope a small tug to make sure it had found a spot to hang onto. It had.

"Where'd you get that?" Phineas asked, spooking Vanessa a little bit. She had forgotten he was here now that he'd stayed quiet long enough. She looked over at the kid, who was staring at her with a look that told her he had no intention of staying behind. Vanessa sighed. This _was_ his brother, after all.

"My dad" Vanessa answered. Her tone practically screamed that the topic was closed. Vanessa yanked on the rope harder, relieved when it wouldn't give. She shifted all of her weight onto it and pulled herself up. Her boots helped hook into the building as she made her way to the roof. When she finally reached the top, she sent her hand up to grab something sturdy before the rope could snap. Not that it would, her dad had messed with the rope a little bit to prevent something like that from happening.

"How could your dad get a hold of something like this?" Phineas asked from below as he followed Vanessa up to the roof. When he was safe and sound on top of the roof, he grabbed the grappling hook and stuffed it inside his pocket. How he managed to do that, she didn't know. Maybe his pockets were bigger on the inside or something.

"No more talking" Vanessa warned as quietly as she could. Phineas' eyes became deathly serious. It honestly started to spook Vanessa how quickly the kid could change frames of mind. Maybe he's the one Perry the Platypus learned it from… Vanessa brought her mind to the present and continued to communicate as well as she could without talking. She pointed down and then at her ear and Phineas nodded. She was instantly glad that he was used to deciphering nonverbal communication.

Until Phineas looked down and jumped into the building. Vanessa mentally smacked herself. She didn't know how "he can still hear us" turned into "we need to go in now". It was like playing a two player version of telephone. Vanessa decided to peer through the opening Phineas had made to see what the boy had jumped into.

In a chair by the front door was her ex boyfriend. He seemed to be sleeping with a bottle. Vanessa sighed of relief and prepared to join the rash red-head in the building. She looked beneath her to make sure she wouldn't fall on anyone. What she saw, however, made her stop cold.

There was Ferb. He was covered in blood and bruises. His hands and feet were tied to the oldest chair in the entire house. Vanessa knew because that had been her father's favorite chair. It was old and rickety and he had said it helped him think of an evil scheme every day. It was one of those things that had driven her mother up a wall. Ferb's eyes were swollen to the point of almost being completely shut. His clothes bore gruesome red spatters of liquid and had some mysterious stains that Vanessa assumed to be alcohol. She didn't doubt her ex of smashing full bottles of whiskey on the poor boy's head.

That thought propelled Vanessa to move. In one swift motion, she hopped from the roof to the floor of the house. Her boots clicked quickly against the rotted floor as she approached the brothers. Phineas was in the middle of cutting the ropes away from Ferb's skin with the grappling hook while talking.

"Ferb, are you okay?" Phineas asked, even though the boy had clearly seen better days. Ferb groaned, causing Phineas to pull a stethoscope out of no where. Vanessa wondered where the hammer space was. "What did he do to you? Don't worry, we're here. We're gonna get you home, Ferb. That's what we're gonna do today."

Ferb chuckled slightly, making Vanessa's heart skip a couple of beats. If it weren't for her, this wouldn't have happened. Ferb and his brother would be inventing something amazing today. But, no. She just _had_ to have company last night. She just _had_ to have a good time with a guy. She just _had_ to go and ruin Ferb's life.

"How's Perry?" Ferb asked softly. Vanessa could tell he hadn't been fed and he had been dehydrated. This wasn't good, especially since it looked like he had been doing some bleeding. Actually, a lot of bleeding.

"Perry's fine right now" Phineas reassured his brother, a chuckle with him. "Isabella patched him up and now he's resting." Vanessa watched as Ferb's eyebrows knitted together in confusion, then relaxed and he nodded. "Yeah, I know" Phineas chuckled. Vanessa felt somewhat lost, and knew that this was probably not the time for all of this.

"Ferb" Vanessa whispered, checking behind her to see if her ex was still in the chair. Her entire being froze when she saw that he was no longer slumped over in the chair like a drunk man. In fact, he wasn't in the chair at all. Vanessa couldn't move at all. He wasn't there. Where did he—

"Ferb!" Phineas yelled, pulling Vanessa's attention back to the two boys. What she saw made her stomach drop past the floorboards and into the center of the earth. He had Ferb. He had an arm around Ferb's neck, and even Vanessa could tell that he was applying pressure that shouldn't be placed around a neck. Vanessa stood in horror as the guy who had caused her endless torment held one of her best friends in his steely grip. To make matters worse, he was laughing in such a way that made Vanessa want to hide in the deepest, darkest closet she could find and never come out again.

"Poor Vanessa" he cooed, sending shivers up and down the girl's spine. The cold, hard glint in his eye betrayed the continuation of his sick laughter as he held the gasping boy in his arm. "Your parents divorce because you're too much trouble to handle, your boyfriends desert you because you're not worth their time, and all of your friends get hurt because of you. Now, who wants to know someone like that?"

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY BROTHER!" Phineas yelled as he sent his pointy head into the older boy's side. Caught off guard, the boy dropped Ferb and fell to the ground. The impact left the unstable floor shaking for a few seconds afterwards. He grinned maniacally.

"Ah, brothers are we?" the insane kidnapper chuckled, turning his head to acknowledge Phineas' presence. Slowly, the man got to his feet, and Vanessa could not find the strength to move hers. The man walked over to Phineas and grasped the twelve-year-old's head. The man threw Phineas off to his side as if he were trash. "And here I thought you were another of Vanessa's little fake friends" the man laughed aloud. Then he turned to stare into Vanessa's soul while she remained immobile. "Are you happy, little girl? You brought in people who had absolutely nothing to do with this…"

"No I didn't…" Vanessa muttered. Though her eyes, wide with fright, could not help her voice to convey the pure loathing she felt for this man. Her eyes decided to portray the rather large portion of her that was scared out of her wits, that was being trapped once more by this silver-tongued man.

"Yes, yes you did…" he said, stepping closer to her. The boys lay forgotten by him, and Phineas tried making his way to his brother in an attempt to get the badly injured boy out of the twisted man's sight. Vanessa, however, had no one to rely on. She was completely alone against this man who had ruined her life and her self esteem. And now he was going to do it all over again. "You just don't want to see it… but it was always your fault… Your parents tell you they love you, but you know its all lies… Your boyfriends say they'll never leave you, but we both know how that ends up…"

"Just stop it" Vanessa spat, her voice between an order and a beg. She found the strength to move her head, just enough to avert his eyes. The eyes that had kept her sinking into depression for so long. They just kept staring at her. Laughing at her. She hated it, yet she felt so _powerless…_

"And now, you can't even be friends with an innocent child without getting them hurt. So, what good are—" the man's despicable voice was cut off and Vanessa felt relieved when she no longer felt his drunken presence in front of her. But what had happened? Vanessa turned to look. There he was again.

Ferb. He had rammed into the older boy and knocked him off his feet mid-stride. Having his opponent on the floor, Ferb towered over the abusive man. His face was that of pure anger and fury.

"A fat lot better than you, I'd say" Ferb muttered. Yet everyone held onto his statement. Vanessa, though relieved that man was out of her face, worried about how Ferb seemed to not quite have his footing. He kept swaying as if he were about to fall over at any second. Phineas, on the other hand, was shocked at how his pacifist and nearly unconscious brother had head butted someone nearly twice his height with the strength of twelve Ferbs.

Vanessa finally forced her feet to move double time. She began to make her way over to Ferb in case he fell over, and yet it was too little too late. The man she had feared for too long had finally got back to his feet and backhanded Ferb. The poor green-haired builder flew across the building and left a dent in the wall. Phineas ran over to the aggressive male in full-on defensive mode. However, before he could lay a blow on the man, he sent Phineas to join his brother on the other side of the room.

It all happened too fast for Vanessa to react, and by the time she could grasp what was going on, the boys lay hurt and unconscious on the other side of the room. The man from her nightmares began to make his way to them, probably to finish the job. Vanessa took one glance at Ferb before her legs acted for her.

"What are you doing, you stupid girl?" the man inquired when Vanessa planted herself in his path. She was shaking. She was terrified. But no one else would get hurt. Not today. Vanessa placed a hand on her belt and grasped a small object from her right side. Slowly, and with as steady a hand as she could manage, she pulled it out and prepared to use it.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Vanessa asked, desperately hoping against all hope that he would just go away. She wished for the man and threat that was before them to just disappear. "I'm stopping you."

"Do you honestly think you can? A stupid girl like you?" the man asked, moving closer and closer. Vanessa prayed for the courage to do what needed to be done. To stay with those two until the end. The bitter end.

"No," Vanessa whispered. She pressed a button and watched as her bo-staff expanded quickly and efficiently. She mentally thanked her father for the millionth time. With a more confident voice, she finished her statement. "But I can't let him down."

"Too late for that, then. I'll just have to show you what you're getting yourself into, you stupid girl" the aggressor began to pick up speed, preparing for a bull charge. Vanessa still had a choice. She could either move and let him hurt Ferb and Phineas, or she could stay and protect them.

With as much courage as she could muster, Vanessa pointed her staff to the charging slab of anger and made her choice. As soon as the boy was close enough, Vanessa jabbed into the boy's side, making him veer off course a little bit, just enough so he would miss the boys and her. However, he stopped sooner than she expected and turned right back around. He glanced from her to the boys then back to her. Getting ready to go again, he rushed at Vanessa, having decided to forget the kidnapped kid and his brother. He'd gotten to what he wanted, and now he was going to follow through on all his lovely notes.

Vanessa braced herself with the knowledge that one trick would not work on him twice. He was a fast learner, and yet, so was she. One of the things they had in common. Vanessa stuck the staff in an upright position and used it to launch herself at the aggressor feet first. Using momentum to her advantage as best as she could, Vanessa used the heel of her boot to give his face a pretty nice gash. As soon as she landed, Vanessa turned around to see the boy come back for another round. He was getting angry quickly, and that was not something that was good for anyone in the room. Vanessa glanced at her bo-staff, then at the grappling hook next to the chair that had held Ferb.

Determined to finish this off as quickly as possible and get some help for Ferb and Phineas, Vanessa threw a couple of smoke bombs her father had made for her and skirted around the edge of the room until she reached the grappling hook. She swiftly detached the hook from the rope and tossed it into the cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared, she saw that the claw had efficiently dug itself into the man's side.

"That's it?" he scoffed, brushing the deep gash off as nothing more than a scratch. "Your big plan is to toss a hook into my side? What am I, some kind fish? Is that the best you can do, you stupid girl?"

"No" Vanessa said, pulling her black boomerang out of the back pocket of her belt. She quickly tied the rope around it and hurled it over to the mocking male.

"Great, now a boomerang" the boy laughed. "Did your dad come up with all of this junk again? Like that stupid car? The one that can't shut up about stupid muffins?"

"As a matter of fact, he did" Vanessa declared as she snapped her fingers. Instantly, the boomerang became stationary in midair.

"What's it doing?" the boy asked, staring at the small boomerang, just hovering in the air. He eyed it with curiosity and suspicion. He knew that if it blew up in his face—which was a very likely outcome—he would be stuck with soot on his face for the rest of the day. Not cool.

"What do you think?" Vanessa asked with the most sarcasm she'd ever used with him before whistling shrilly. As she did, the boomerang spun in circles around the ridiculing kidnapper. He simply laughed as he saw the rope encircle him.

"You know I'm just going to break out of this rope, watch" he sneered Vanessa continued to whistle, sending the boomerang around and around its target. He was completely relaxed in his overconfidence. So much so that he did not even notice when the two boys' eyes flickered open.

"Oh, really?" Vanessa ending her shrill whistle, sending the boomerang back to her. As soon as it did, Vanessa pulled both ends of the rope as hard as she could, using strength she did not know she possessed. The boy fell flat on his face. Quickly—so he couldn't get up—Vanessa ran over to his side and kept a heeled boot on his back as she finished tying him up. "I don't think you can get out of this one. Brought it straight from dad's lab."

"What?" the boy was—for the first time in a long time—dumbfounded. Especially a split second later when a little girl kicked down the front door. She was clad in pink, had raven black hair, and bore a serious frown.

"Isabella!" Phineas croaked as loudly as he could, obviously worried, but having no strength to do anything about it. Upon seeing him on the ground covered in bruises and a few cuts, the girl's frown deepened and her eyes slanted in protective fury.

"We got 'em, boys" Isabella said as she ran into the room. Following her were police and paramedics, also running. The police gathered up the man accused of being a menace to society by threats and kidnapping. Also—when his car was identified—D.U.I.

As soon as the horrid man was out from underneath her foot, Vanessa sighed of relief as her knees hit the floor. It felt good to sit and watch as police took her nightmares away. She knew she probably wouldn't feel completely at ease for a while, but she now knew she could defend herself if need be. For herself, and for other people.

"Miss, we need to have you examined for any injuries" a paramedic came to Vanessa and offered a hand. Brushing it off, Vanessa got up on her own and took a step in the direction of the person she felt she owed an explanation to.

_**14AmyChan: okay, so only one more chapter ~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: Thank you for finishing torturing me. You can stop the story now.**_

_**14AmyChan: Never! I have to wait another chapter before calling it good. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: *rolls eyes***_

_**14AmyChan: okay, PLEASE R&R~! *^_^***_


	9. Relief

_**14AmyChan: w00t~! We're almost done~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: have fun with that**_

_**14AmyChan: well, I don't own it, so enjoy~! *^_^***_

"Hey, Ferb" Vanessa said as she finally reached the paramedic truck parked in the street that Ferb had practically been dragged to for treatment. His shirt had been removed and his chest was wrapped in gauze. His eyes were still swollen, but on their way to recovery. He had a bottle of water next to him, and some paramedics were fussing about him off to the side. Yet, they were far enough away for Vanessa to feel she could have a private conversation with the green-haired boy.

She had gone over what she was going to say to him and how she was going to apologize for the entire mess, but all of that had left her mind now. She had no idea what to say to him. This person who shouldn't have even been involved with this ordeal. He should have been at home with his brother, planning and inventing and being innocent. She felt so horrible for having taken that away from him.

"Don't do that" Ferb ordered, a stern look in his puffy eyes. Vanessa felt confused, she hadn't been doing anything. She hadn't even said a word. Well, she'd said hi, but that was about all she did. "What happened isn't your fault."

Oh. That.

"Yes it is. It is all my fault" Vanessa disagreed. Though she desperately wanted to look anywhere but Ferb's eyes, that was where her vision stayed. "None of this would have happened without me. Ferb, I—"

Vanessa was cut short by a hand that sought out—and held—her own. She looked down at her hand and saw that Ferb had it in his firm, yet gentle, grip. When she studied his hand, she realized that it was actually quite large for a twelve-year-old. In fact, everything about the boy seemed a little bit older. Like a mature fifteen-year-old. The boy seemed so beyond his years.

"I knew you were being followed last night" Ferb admitted, startling Vanessa. She almost pulled her hand out of Ferb's when she noticed lack of a certain emotion: Regret. He looked a little embarrassed and slightly shy, but no regret had invaded his voice or expression. Vanessa decided to simply wait and hear the boy out. She gestured that he continue.

"I'd been in the park for about an hour before I saw someone in the bushes" Ferb explained. "Even with the goggles, I couldn't make out anything that would mark him dangerous other than the way he was stalking around. So I followed him around for a bit. And then I saw you" here, a small smile flew onto Ferb's face. "I can't tell you how happy that made me to see you again. The last time I had seen you was in Paris."

Here, Vanessa felt a small pang of guilt. But she had said goodbye and thank you before departing with her father. However, she kept silent so as Ferb could finish what he was saying. After a few seconds of awkward silence, Vanessa tilted her head in an urge for him to continue.

"I didn't say anything because I didn't know if you knew he was there" Ferb resumed. A wave of sadness swept over his eyes and the smile fled his face, leaving Vanessa's heart more than a little chipped. "But when I saw you look so frightened, I thought it better that you didn't know. But I didn't want to put you in danger, so I thought it would be nice to walk around where other people were."

"So he followed us to RadioShack© and while we had the shakes?" Vanessa asked in horror. She began to wonder how Ferb got off as lightly as he did. While she had been in school, any kid who had so much as _looked_ at her right after the breakup had been sent to the hospital with broken fingers, bloody noses, and one poor boy even had a fractured hip bone. None had so much glanced her way since. She had become the school outcast in a matter of days.

As a response to her horrified question, Ferb shook his head. Vanessa saw Ferb's little smile back, and the sight helped her to calm down a little bit. "It seemed like he didn't want to be found out" Ferb clarified. "He simply left and I didn't see him after that."

After that last statement, the air seemed to get heavier. Vanessa couldn't believe she hadn't seen something like that. She'd let Ferb down again. Before she could slip into thoughts of self-loathing, however, she felt a small squeeze on her hand. Vanessa focused on Ferb's bruised, swollen, and slightly bloodied face.

"I don't regret it" he stated with his small smile. Vanessa simply stood there with Ferb's hand. He was here—bruised, bandaged, and bloodied because of her—and yet he could still say that he doesn't regret any of it? How could that be? Suddenly, his eyes widened in elation and he stuck his free hand in his pocket. Vanessa didn't have enough time to be curious before Ferb stuck something small in her hands. Vanessa looked up at Ferb before seeing what it was that he placed in her hands.

It was a key chain. It was small and black and it looked like a dog tag. There was a white star in the middle of the front and—in clear letters—the name "Vanessa" in white block letters in the back. It was simple, yet she loved it. She didn't know why, she just did. But why would he get her something like this?

"From the spike store" Ferb explained, using the nickname that Vanessa had come up for the store last night. She had laughed about the spike collar so much, that was what the store had come to be known as. Vanessa sported a small smile at the little joke. "It's for your first car"

Vanessa was shocked at how well he knew her. She hadn't actually thought of a keychain for her car, just being intent on getting one. The chain was so simple and small, and yet it instantly became—in that moment—one of her most treasured possessions. She held it in her hand a bit longer before securing it in her pocket.

"Thanks, Ferb…" Vanessa smiled. Before she knew what she was doing, she walked over to Ferb and wrapped her arms around him, securing him in a gentle hug. When he returned the gesture—Ferb's way of saying your welcome—she felt her smile widen.

"Isabella!" a voice gleefully shouted from the other side of the yard. Breaking the tender moment, Ferb and Vanessa turned around to see Phineas and Isabella's faces extremely close. Both were extremely red and had awkward smiles. Ferb laughed softly, gaining Vanessa's attention once more.

"It's about time" Ferb commented, nodding over to the new couple.

"I thought they were already dating" Vanessa mused, a chuckle in her voice. Ferb simply shrugged sheepishly, yet Vanessa could tell the kid was overflowing with happiness for the two. "What about you, you got a girl?" she asked, deciding that her legs were tired and that she should finally sit next to the interrogated party. He simply looked at her for a second before shaking his head.

"Huh…" Vanessa murmured as she looked from one brother to another, confusion grazing her face. When her eyes reached Ferb again, he had a look that said—as plain as daylight—'what gives?'

"I just thought you would be the first one to get a girlfriend. You just seem a little more… well… ready" Vanessa didn't want to call Phineas immature, but that was how he'd come across to her as.

"I'm just glad for him" Ferb stated, once again looking over at the happy couple. Phineas was still sitting in one of the paramedic vans. He wasn't as bandaged or as bruised as Ferb, but he still was being paid close attention to, and for that, Ferb was thankful. Isabella was sitting next to him, and although Ferb could not see her face, he could tell that she was at once agitated and extremely happy. "I'm glad for both of them. She's waited a long time for this."

"How long has she waited?" Vanessa asked, also gazing at the couple across the yard. She watched as Isabella wrapped Phineas into a hug, much like she herself had done to Ferb only a few seconds prior.

In response to her question, Ferb just shrugged. In all honesty, he had no clue for how long Isabella had harbored feelings for Phineas, only that they were strong. He also knew that waiting had gotten her where she wanted to be, and he had faith that it would do the same for him.

Vanessa watched as Ferb raised his shoulders in admittance of no knowledge. After that, her gaze wandered to the house that had meant so much to her as a child. Now ruined and decayed. She sighed and wondered if it were worth saving at this point. Two taps came onto her hand. She turned to face Ferb's questioning face.

"I used to come here every summer" Vanessa answered the oncoming question. "When my parents split up, no one took care of it anymore, so I did. It used to look nice, but now I'm not sure if it's worth the hassle of getting nice again…"

"Is it important to you?" Ferb asked, his accent underlining the question's seriousness. Vanessa simply stared at the old building and wondered that herself. What had kept her taking care of this cottage for so long? Had it been to save the past, or for the future? So she'd have a place to stay when she finally turned eighteen? After a while, the answer seemed to uncover itself, like a fog dissipating on a warm day at the beach. One moment you can't find anything, and the next—

"Yeah…" Vanessa sighed in realization. She began to wonder how she could have let this place—this important place—fall to ruin because of a _boy_. Now she'd have to fix it back up. "It doesn't mean it'll be easy…" Vanessa added sadly.

Ferb shook his head. "If it's worth it, you'll fight for it" he stated. He looked over to Vanessa, the girl who he couldn't see being upset. Yet he knew this was something she should do. "I'll help if you need me to" Ferb offered, knowing that his assistance might help the daunting task become that much smaller.

"Ferb…" Vanessa said after a few seconds of silence. She looked over at the green-haired man. "Why are you doing this? It's not like you—" Yet the look in his eyes quite plainly said otherwise and halted the girl's wrong observation in its tracks. It had taken her a long time to decode what Ferb's expressions meant, and now they had come in handy.

"How long have you waited?" she asked, finally catching on. She felt so stupid for not having noticed it before, but the kid had been ten years old! Yet, when she looked in his eyes now, she knew that he was a man far beyond his years, and those years would eventually pile up to mean next to nothing. Hers as well.

"Since I first saw you" Ferb answered honestly, yet his continuation shocked her. "But another relationship might be the last thing you need right now. I'll keep waiting until you're comfortable."

Vanessa could only sit there in shock. Usually the boys she hung out with would gather around her like sharks once she was single, but he was giving her some much needed space to breathe. She realized that her hand was still in his and gave it a small squeeze.

"I can't tell you what that means to me…" Vanessa said truthfully. She didn't know herself how she felt about him: the man beyond his years, the most compassionate soul on the face of the planet, and one who had literally stuck his life on the line to help protect her. Ferb. He'd done it all and so much more for her. She'd never asked for it—any of it, but he'd always been there for her. "You know what?" she asked suddenly, receiving a momentarily shocked look from Ferb. She smiled in childlike anticipation. "When we're working on this, the shakes are on me this time."

Ferb smiled in elation. He'd felt like he'd gone through hell in a hand basket; he was beaten, sore, and bruised; and yet he felt that not a single thing could worry him now. He got to spend more time with Vanessa, and he could only pray that she'd come around.

Little did he know that within a week he'd have to meet his new girlfriend's father.

_**14AmyChan: Okay, that's it~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: Well, it had a kind of happy ending…**_

_**Ferb: …**_

_**14AmyChan: thanks for the enthusiasm, Ferb~! *^_^***_

_**Ferb: *nods***_

_**14AmyChan: okay, me no own-y, hope you liked, please don't forget to R&R~! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: and by the way, if you guys have questions about some of this stuff, Amy'll make oneshots to explain.**_

_**14AmyChan: TTFN~! Ta Ta For Now~! *^_^***_


	10. Colors

_**14AmyChan: surprise! *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: I thought you said this was done!**_

_**14AmyChan: change of plans, I decided to write a kind of "what happens next" thing. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: well, how long after the story is this?**_

_**14AmyChan: about two weeks. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: works for me.**_

_**14AmyChan: enjoy the ending of the story with characters that I don't own~! *^_^***_

Vanessa worked as the morning summer's sun peeked over the trees to see her work. Her attire of choice was a baggy white tee-shirt with a black tank top underneath and a pair of worn out comfortable blue overalls. She wore converse shoes that already had dirt all over them and gloves that had once had surely been white. Yet now they were as brown as the soil she was working with. Her hair was pulled back in a messy brown ponytail as she concentrated on her job at hand.

Deciding that her task was done for now, Vanessa stood up and stretched. She let out a satisfied sigh as she looked around her transformed lawn. What had been a dead mess only a few weeks ago was now showing the brightness of life. Green shoots came up from the ground here and there, giving the rich soil some color. Soon, her gaze found itself upon the garden she had finally decided to put in. There were numerous and colorful flowers that had been planted in front of the cottage of her childhood. Yet as of now, they, too, were nothing more than green shoots.

Speaking of the cottage, some work had been done on it as well. Though they couldn't put color on it right away, the house had lost its haunted status when the vines had been cut away and boards began to be repaired. Vanessa walked over to the wall and brushed off another patch of dirt, revealing a warm shade of grey. Knowing that _her_ home lay just underneath the dirty surface gave her more determination to restore it to its former homey nature.

A tapping on her left hand brought her back to the present. Vanessa turned to see that her builder had arrived with a couple of cans of hardwood finish in his hands. He had also chosen some hand-me-down worn out clothes for the occasion. He had on a plain white tee-shirt and worn out comfortable blue jeans. He wore his normal tennis shoes for the work ahead, and he did not seem bothered by the fact that they seemed worn and dirty. His green hair already stayed out of his eyes without any assistance.

"Hey, Ferb" she smiled as she welcomed him with a hug. True, she was caked in dirt, but he would be, too, in a minute. A fact they both knew, but neither minded.

Vanessa led the man into her home and looked around. It already looked so different from a couple of weeks ago. The floors were a light brown hardwood, to be finished today. The walls no longer had the look that they were to fall apart. The roof held tall and strong, giving the home a bigger and more comfortable feel. All the furniture was covered with white sheets, for today was to be a fun day for the house. Today was the addition of color.

Deciding that the home could use some color now, Vanessa got on top of one of the covered couches and reached for one of the covered-up windows. With a flourish of her hand, she unveiled the stain-glass window. It had been one of her favorites when she was a child. It was a shepherd and his sheep on a hill. When the sun hit the window just right, the entire room lit up in such a way that it could only be described as magical.

Yet now was not that time, and Vanessa knew that there was only a little more work to be done on the floor. She stared at the nearly finished hardwood floor in satisfaction. In the last few weeks, she had nearly fallen through twice. Both times Ferb had caught her. Now the floor was sturdy thanks to both of their hard work. In fact, they had started the finish yesterday and were nearly three quarters of the way done with the floors of the entire house. Vanessa rolled up one of her baggy sleeves on her working shirt and grabbed one of the brushes. Smiling, her companion took the other brush in his hand and opened one of the cans of finish.

For about two hours they worked on the remaining hardwood floors. Occasionally they would get a small amount of the mahogany brown liquid on each other's work clothes, an introduction to the fun to come. While they worked, they had some small conversation.

"Dad's inators didn't freak you out, did they?" Vanessa checked as she worked on the floor. Last week, when Ferb had come over to meet her father after officially becoming her boyfriend, her dad had completely flipped. He had instantly fired ray after ray of the Away-inator at Ferb, all of which he had dodged. It had taken Vanessa to get him to calm down so they could all eat peacefully.

"No" Ferb replied as he continued his own work. A small smile crept onto his face. "I actually found it rather amusing. I still don't understand why he wants to take over the tri-state area…"

"It's just this thing he does" Vanessa sighed, remembering how her father had begun to act like he would in front of Perry the Platypus (who ended up showing up after Ferb had left). "I'm pretty sure it won't happen because most of his machines have self-destruction buttons on them" Vanessa chuckled at the thought. Why her father made every machine with a self-destruct button, she'd never know.

"Then it looks like our tri-state area is safe for a while" Ferb smiled as he stood up. He scanned the entire floor twice and then walked over to a missed patch and began to place finish on that.

"So how are Phineas and Isabella?" Vanessa asked. She hadn't seen either since that day two weeks ago. Yet Ferb had gotten a lot of spare time to help her with the house, so she assumed things were going well.

"Right now they're in Fiji" Ferb chuckled as he finished with the small patch of wood. He looked over at Vanessa, who was almost finished with her area of floor. "Do you need any help?" he asked.

"Nah, I'm good" Vanessa responded as she continued with her piece of floor. She stopped for a second before looking up at Ferb. "How did your brother and his girlfriend end up in Fiji? They're twelve."

"Teleportation in their phones, they'll be back in time for dinner," Ferb answered as he leaned against one of the now sturdy support beams. Vanessa shrugged as she continued to finish her patch of hardwood. Within a minute, she was done. Satisfied, she glanced over at her partner in home repair.

"Ready for the messy part?" Vanessa asked as she began to soak the finish-covered brushes. Ferb placed the lids on the empty cans of finish and took them out to the trash, nodding before he left. Vanessa went to the room that once been hers. Now it housed the paint they were going to use on the walls. She'd wanted to repaint the main room for the past few years now, but had never found time. Now that there was time, she had decided that the living room should have some new color. The other rooms had been left undamaged by her ex-boyfriend and she had decided to leave them as they were.

Grabbing the soft golds and huge brushes from the top shelf of her old closet, Vanessa was relieved to find that there seemed to be enough paint supplies for them to be done in a few hours. She brought the supplies into the main room, the one they were to be painting. Since Ferb had not yet come back into the house, Vanessa grabbed one of the large white sheets and covered the floor with it. To her surprise, that one sheet covered the entire floor.

"Are you ready?" a voice from the doorway asked, causing Vanessa to look up. Ferb stood there with a small grin on his face. She returned his grin.

"Two weeks of hard work lead to a few hours of fun," Vanessa mused as she handed Ferb a paintbrush. She was smiling as Ferb approached her. "Whaddya say?"

"I say let's get to it" Ferb smiled. He turned to the walls—a blank canvas yet to be painted on. He turned back to Vanessa, a question dancing in his eyes. "How do you want it painted?"

"Just go wild on it" Vanessa said as she began making random strokes on the wall. The paint was plopped on and then smudged around, making unique patterns. Ferb watched her for a few seconds before reaching over for the radio. Suddenly, high tempo music was playing through the entire house. A song that Vanessa was familiar with, being that she was the one who had sung it.

"Do you mind if we have some music?" Ferb asked as Vanessa began to get in the groove of the song.

"Sure, let's get to work" Vanessa smiled as she and Ferb continued to paint. They danced around the room to this song and many others. Yet the one that came back was the ring tone Ferb had set for Vanessa on his cell phone.

**(link: www . youtube watch ? v = NfYokp3Mhrc )**

_I can do it, I can run, I can hunt you down.  
You can try, but you can't stop me 'cause I'm gaining ground.  
I'm light on my feet and I'm quick to the punch.  
I had a heavy breakfast, but a real light lunch.  
I'm a raging bonfire, a cherry bomb, I'm me._

I'm rough-and-tumble, I'm the one to beat,  
I'm a fresh coat of blacktop burnin' at your feet.  
I've got a poisonous sting, when I rain I pour.  
I'm the best of the best, I'm the soupe du jour.

I'm smooth as glass, and sharp as a tack, I'm me.  
I'm the last and best stick of gum in the pack, I'm me.

I'm a strong woman, fast-talking, big-bad-dog walking,  
High falutin', drum-beatin', foot stompin', corn-poppin',  
Speeding locomotive that just won't stop!  
I'm a hot apple pie with a cherry on top!

I'm a crowd pleasin', head spinnin',  
Winnin' in the ninth inning,  
Whip-lashing, record-smashin',  
Black-tie party crashing!

Cyclone of fun, I'm an army of one!  
I'm strawberry sprinkles on a hot cross bun!

I'm a big haymaker in a title fight.  
I'm a cute black kitten with a nasty bite.  
I'm an action double-feature on a Friday night!

I'm me! (x5)

Finally, after hours of working, the entire room was painted a beautiful gold. It was as if a peaceful golden wind had blown through it, leaving behind a beautiful pattern. It was a color that reached every wall and even parts of the ceiling. Vanessa and Ferb lay on the covered ground, looking up at their work dry. Their clothes had splatters of gold on them, evidence of the time they had. Even their faces had smudges of gold on their foreheads, cheeks, and noses. They were laughing as the music finally shut off.

"That was so much fun" Vanessa said as her laughing finally died down. Her eyes were still processing the majestic beauty of the room that she and Ferb had just finished. It had many uneven and unique patterns in the texture, and the color made it just perfect for…

"It looks like we made it in time" Ferb murmured as the last few bursts of sunlight hit the stained glass window. Breathlessly, the duo stared in wonder as the light filtered through the colored glass, leading to its refraction all over the room. The many colors glinted to the walls, turning the simple gold into a rainbow of beauty. All the colors crashed together in an unexpected harmony. The colors danced around the room like that for a few minutes, leaving the two in a world of peace they hadn't dreamed of.

As the two came closer together to watch the colors dance around the room, they both felt—in their silent exchange—that this was the best thing that could possibly happen to them.

_**14AmyChan: Okay, it was cheesy, corny, and done kind of quickly. I just wanted to show that the cottage does get restored to its previous awesomeness and even better. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: so this is really the end?**_

_**14AmyChan: yes, yes it is. *^_^***_

_**Vanessa: sure?**_

_**14AmyChan: yes. I promise. No more chapters on Ferb or Fear.**_

_**Vanessa: all right. Review at the bottom.**_


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